My friend at my college has a Blackberry Pearl. I love this phone and the trackball to pumped over that. She is always cracking on my 7100i saying it looks like a house phone and has no camera,mp3 etc. So today I went into the t-mobile store shocked to find out I can get it for 199 and the blackberry plans are much cheaper. The only problem is I did not switch today because of nextel's ETF of 200 dollars is there anyway I can leave Nextel with out paying the ETF thier blackberry plans are crazy high and the 7520 and 7100i are two sorry choices for blackberrys both outdated and thick as a brick

__________________
"Take off the blazer loosen up the tie
Step inside the booth Superman is alive"-Jay-Z

Did your text messaging rates change resentlly? Most carriers just raised the rates from 10 cents to 15 cents. If yours did too that constitutes a martial change in your plan, and voids the contract. Of coarse that assumes you sent text messages.

Now before you get too excited the carries have been fighting this like crazy. They will say that SMS is a separate service and not part of the plan, or some such other lame excuse. You can not turn off SMS, or deny it. Anyone can send you message that you will have to pay for so the change clearlly effects the plan.

Bottom line is that even though this is black letter law the carriers know that no one is likely to take them to court over $200.

There are some other ext ream options. If you move to an area with no service, or if you are roaming on other networks more than %50 of the time they will cancel your servce.

Theres been talk on the Nextel section of Howard Forums of a loop hole that allows Nextel subscribers to port to Boost without the ETF. You can then port out of Boost. Boost starter kits are like 15 dollars and of course there is no ETF since its pre-paid. Im not saying its fact, but if youre serious you may want to take a closer look at that. WARNING: Its a long thread.

Personally I like my 7100i. I know this sounds kind of dumb but I always felt that Nextel phones tend to be more masculine and professional looking over most other carriers. Also I had a SE k750i prior to switching to blackberry and I really think the media features in cell phones are overrated. The thing that bothered me with the SE was while it could do a lot of stuff it really didn't do them well. My 7100i does what its supposed to do extremely well, communication. Plus it doesn't hurt that I only pay $40 a month for a blackberry, try doing that with any other carrier.

Thanks everyone for the help. You guys really know your stuff. I thought about it and I weighed out the pros/cons.The 7100i a very good phone has lots of features and gets the job done. Nextel also offers good service for the most part. Now step into the year 2007 new phones that do it all are on the market. The Blackberrys now do it all as well. Also I like the idea of the t-mobile at home service. Then we as consumers want more choices in the phone department. I looked at Nextel's offerings and said wow not much there. I have to say the one phone that is making me leave nextel is the Blackberry Curve. This phone is the final straw for me. I know nextel is not getting that ever I mean they have had the 7100i since 2005. I think I'm going to switch and say to hell with etf you only live once

__________________
"Take off the blazer loosen up the tie
Step inside the booth Superman is alive"-Jay-Z

By the way the 7520 is not a sorry choice for a Blackberry. Some people want a cellphone with a Blackberry name like the Pearl. Others just want a real Blackberry. The Pearl is pretty. The 7520 is functional. It depends on what you want. I feel that if you want mp3 get an iPod. If you want a camera, get a camera. A Blackberry isn't for everyone especially people that can't afford the data plan.

If you search Howards Forum on getting out of you contract without an ETF, you will find several postings on how to get out. I was having terrible service problems with Craptel. That, along with my company deciding to switch to VZW (agin because of poor service) made me decide to look hard at how to get my wife's contract cancelled. Here is a link - HowardForums: Your Mobile Phone Community & Resource - ETF denied
It sound like you are having good service (lucky you) so this may not work for you. Good luck

You signed the contract. You're stuck. Either pay the ETF or don't switch. Those are your only two options.

Closed minded.

Try anything, even asking is better then giving up like this person suggests.
I would find a young person who is working that you trust and let them take over payments. Then move myself. The SMS contract change is also something to try. Good luck to you.

If you are definitely leaving Nextel/Sprint:
I got a friend out of a contract and out of Early Termination fee's simply by saying that "I" (really meaning him) was going to be relocated for work, and upon visiting his new residence, he did not have any reception (check their coverage map and pick an area that they don't list as having great service). I buttered the rep up by saying how much "I" loved Nextel's service, and how I would switch back as soon as I was in a serviceable area. I also explained that due to the costs of relocating, the $200.00 ETF would terribly offset "my" funds available for moving. The rep was somehow able to get "me" out of paying the ETF (after putting me on hold to speak with his supervisor), and reminded me to rejoin as soon as I was in a serviceable area.

If the above doesn't work:
If you strikeout on buttering the rep up, ask them if it's possible to switch to Sprint. Explain that either way, you are leaving Nextel's side due to lack of service. Tell them that you'd like the option, with no fees, to switch to the Sprint PCS network, which actually tends to have far superior network coverage (I've had both).

If all else fails:
Thank them for leaving a customer no other option than to pay $200 that he can't afford (regardless of whether or not you can). Thank them for failing miserably in the Customer Satisfaction department, and let them know that you'll be pointing your family and friends to other carriers.

Sounds long and drawn out, but if it saves you $200, I'd say it's worth it. It was in my friends case.

Try anything, even asking is better then giving up like this person suggests.
I would find a young person who is working that you trust and let them take over payments. Then move myself. The SMS contract change is also something to try. Good luck to you.

Yawn. I've been called worse.

It has nothing to do with giving up. It has to do with taking responsibility.

People cry consistantly about how they want out of their contract, or how they don't have the coolest, newest thing. Not to mention the folks that look to cheat the system without a Data Plan, etc.

It simply makes me laugh at people that sign things without reading them, and then complain when they have.

Add to that the people that whine about how much phones cost. There are cheaper options out there for you. Just because the hottest current product is still $300+ doesn't mean they're wrong for charging that. Nor are people entitled to any smartphone just because they exist.

ETFs are put in place as phone price subsidy justification. Ask all you want. What would motivate a carrier to drop an ETF when you're leaving them as a subscriber?

The amount of time and energy wasted on a regular basis trying to short the system is pretty profound. To me, it's worth the ETF to not have to deal with all that unnecessary drama and as Kyoo said, "never look back."

It has nothing to do with giving up. It has to do with taking responsibility.

People cry consistantly about how they want out of their contract, or how they don't have the coolest, newest thing. Not to mention the folks that look to cheat the system without a Data Plan, etc.

It simply makes me laugh at people that sign things without reading them, and then complain when they have.

Add to that the people that whine about how much phones cost. There are cheaper options out there for you. Just because the hottest current product is still $300+ doesn't mean they're wrong for charging that. Nor are people entitled to any smartphone just because they exist.

ETFs are put in place as phone price subsidy justification. Ask all you want. What would motivate a carrier to drop an ETF when you're leaving them as a subscriber?

The amount of time and energy wasted on a regular basis trying to short the system is pretty profound. To me, it's worth the ETF to not have to deal with all that unnecessary drama and as Kyoo said, "never look back."

I agree, well said. However, I think an open mind is critical when judging these situations. Obviously, nobody would want to pay the EFT, especially now that up to 8% of the total monthly charge is tacked on as "Non-Regulatory Sprint/Nextel Charges". I've had this battle many many times. With a $98/month bill, I pay Sprint $23 for "Costs incurred while following mandatory regulations". So, in a year I'm paying almost 3 months of regular service just so they don't get fined for not following the rules. If I ran a restaurant business, do you think I'd put on the menu "In addition to the cost of your meal, you are also responsible for the costs I incur in following regulations." Why would I start a restaurant business and expect the customers to pay for my upkeep? That's why markup is in place, so that I can budget out of my net profit how much I put to employee salaries, store upkeep, etc.

Point is, with all the charges thrown into an already extensively overpriced service, I encourage anyone leaving their carrier to take one last opportunity to "stick it to the man". Carriers and reps aren't your friends. If they want my money for a BS charge, I'm certainly not going to lay on my back and take it. $200 is a good 6-7 hour workday for me.

It has nothing to do with giving up. It has to do with taking responsibility.

People cry consistantly about how they want out of their contract, or how they don't have the coolest, newest thing. Not to mention the folks that look to cheat the system without a Data Plan, etc.

It simply makes me laugh at people that sign things without reading them, and then complain when they have.

Add to that the people that whine about how much phones cost. There are cheaper options out there for you. Just because the hottest current product is still $300+ doesn't mean they're wrong for charging that. Nor are people entitled to any smartphone just because they exist.

ETFs are put in place as phone price subsidy justification. Ask all you want. What would motivate a carrier to drop an ETF when you're leaving them as a subscriber?

The amount of time and energy wasted on a regular basis trying to short the system is pretty profound. To me, it's worth the ETF to not have to deal with all that unnecessary drama and as Kyoo said, "never look back."

Good for you for standing up for what is right. That's not to say that the carriers are blameless but if someone decides to sign a contract, they must honor it. There may be extenuating circumstances where an ETF should be waived but wanting a new phone is not one of them.